Comprehension
by One Small Word
Summary: It was a routine patrol: catch a few muggers, stop some crimes, the usual. I was cuffing the newest gang in a factory when a bomb I missed blew. I was reletively fine, until the ceiling fell on my head. *Set during the second season and the team will come
1. Blown to Pieces

**First story! Yay!**

** I. Own. NOTHING! DON'T SUE ME!**

**(DG)**

I looked down at the old paper making factory, smoke rising from the pipes reaching out of the ceiling. I raised my hand up to my ear to contact the League, but hesitated and let it fall back to my side.

When I was younger, there would have been no thought of hesitation. I would have immediately called my team or mentor to update him on the mission's progress. But now, nearly two years into my solo career, I held back.

I really wish I hadn't done that. I mean, even though I was now in charge of the Young Justice team and we were still tasked with finding the resident aliens, I still had my own city to take care of, and I couldn't let my priorities falter. I didn't need help.

All I had to do was go in, take down a small drug cartel and be done with it. Simple. Easy. Routine. I thought I could do it on my own. I didn't want to call it in.

I used my grappling-hook to fire a line and it wrapped around one of the smoking pipes I had seen. I smirked confidently and walked off the side of the roof I was crouched on earlier.

I didn't fall, remember the grappling-hook? It yanked my body up into the air as I swung around the side of the factory, my weight causing me to arch onto a window ledge that jutted out from the square building.

I reeled the line back in and placed it back into the belt around my waist and slowly edged the window up so I could crawl inside. Way too easy. I knew I was being cocky, but at the time, I felt I could without anything going wrong. What an idiot I was.

I slipped inside and quietly landed on an inside cat-walk that would allow two people to walk around the perimeter of the factory without having to step down onto the lower level where the machinery was.

I crouched down and leaned over the protective railing to look down at the goons I would fight. Oblivious to my presence, the cartel kept on with usual business. It was too easy.

I started suddenly when a pigeon decided to fly inside the window that I had left slightly open to quicken my escape. The loud flapping made me flinch and caused the gang below to quiet and glance at where I was hiding.

They turned to the one I assumed was the leader. No noise or command was given, but something happened because they scattered to corner me.

I gritted my teeth and chastised myself for leaving the window open. If Bats were here he would've had my head after we beat these idiots into the ground, assuming we won.

A gun shot brought the world back into focus as the sound of gunfire surrounded me. I cursed and flipped into the air over the boss's head. He turned to face me, but before he completed the spin, I pulled out my escrima sticks and whacked him upside the head. He grunted and collapsed to the floor, dropping the gun in the process.

The rest of the goons turned to me, but I was already across the room kicking one's gun across the floor. I got back into a fighting stance and blocked his erratic punches before pinching a joint in his neck letting him fall and join his boss in the land of the unconscious.

I did a double-backhand spring to avoid the continued gunfire. I noticed a few of the group backing away towards the drugs. My guess was that they were trying to salvage what wasn't already destroyed by their own bullets.

"Oh no, you don't," I muttered. I tossed a batarang to hit the bag of the white powder in front of a reaching hand which was quickly retracted. He yelped and backed away towards a now open door in the left wall.

I ignored him, knowing that the police probably had arrived already and caught him. Turning instead to the other grunt that had been reaching into the bundle, I noticed that the others had already escaped.

I grunted in annoyance and began cuffing the unconscious gang members. The click of the metal locking and the now loud wailing of police sirens were now filing the empty silence.

I stood up from the last grunt as my com-link buzzed. I lifted my hand and narrowed my eyes under my black domino mask as I opened the link.

"Yes?" I asked, "What's wrong?" Batman answered on the opposite end with his usual gruff voice. "Nightwing, your presence is required at the Watchtower. The Justice League needs to brief you on the next mission for your team."

I smirked into the earpiece as I answered, "You mean, _you_, need to brief me? You know that the rest of the League can't give the _'get 'traught or get dead'_ atmosphere you give to the missions?" He turned his head slightly as a bright red light flickered in his peripheral vision, a steady beeping accompanying every flash.

Batman grunted at my signature abuse of the English language and continued explaining what was required of me that night, but I stopped listening and went to investigate the red light.

I walked closer to the red dot with a feeling of foreboding quickly spreading through me. When I walked around the last stack of drug packs, my fears were soon realized.

The beeping grew louder and faster within the minute I had been talking with the Bat. I gulped as it reached its peak and turned to run out of the building. Muttering continuously about how obvious the danger was and how screwed I would be when I got back.

Batman stopped talking and quickly demanded, "Nightwing, what's wrong? What happened?" I touched the com-link and rushed to answer, but what I was about to say was changed as the whole place blew to pieces around me.

"Oh, shi –"

I yelled as the shockwave propelled my body through the air and directly into the far, concrete wall. I groaned and slid down onto the floor. The debris fell from the ceiling and onto the ground around me.

The fire that had started around the drugs was quickly put out by the dirt raining down from the residual blast.

The dust settled and I took a quick inventory of myself. It could have been worse. I had killer back pain, a strong migraine, and multiple cuts and bruises. Oh yeah, and I couldn't move my lower body or left arm. Yeah, it could definitely be worse. I tried not to look at what had happened to the gang members I had cuffed earlier, all of them being too crushed to be recognizable.

I coughed up some of the dust and dirt that had gotten into my lungs when my face and the wall introduced themselves. I reached up one hand to wipe my mouth, pulling it away with a dark red liquid splattered on one side.

I flinched when my com-link buzzed angrily in my ear only to be replaced with the even louder sound of Batman yelling in my ear. I hissed slightly in pain and gently took it out of my ear, only enough to ease my headache, nothing more.

"Nightwing, report. I'm getting interference from your end. Do you need assistance?" I groaned again and shifted, muscles aching with the effort. I coughed a laugh and admitted quietly, "Hah, yeah, Bats. I messed up, bad. At least you don't have to say it was me who blew the roof off this place this time, huh?" I coughed again and leaned my head back against the wall. The building gave a dangerous creak in agreement.

. . .

"Are you alright?" I cackled quietly and murmured, "Careful there, B, your personality is showing again." I looked up through the dust that clouded my view of the wreckage and up at the steel beams looming over my head.

The support beams groaned again and started to break, soon about to fall directly on top of me. Fun.

"Hey, Bruce?" I hesitated again, unsure of how to continue, "If I don't come back this time, tell Tim I'm sorry for leaving him alone, and – and make sure Alfred gets a break every once and a while, kay?" The beams fell a little more and I swallowed nervously. "Don't work yourself to death, B, you have a family that depends on you and your health, plus, we worry." I grimaced and coughed a little harder.

I smirked again and closed my hand around the com-link, pulling it close to my mouth as I nearly whispered, "Sorry."

"Dick, what–"

The support beams finally broke and came hurtling down. I pulled the hand holding the com-link above my head, unable to move and protect myself otherwise.

Within seconds I knew what the Greek titan, Atlas, must have felt when he held the sky up from the earth for years.

A sickening cracking sound came from my raised arm, and my world turned a deep red before reaching an empty and endless black.

I fell into it, but not before a distinct crackle buzzed in my head. The yells of my adopted father faded and disappeared only to be replaced by the calm static of nothingness.

(3rd pov)

The building, or what was left of it, was filled with the horrible sound of crashing metal accompanied by its groaning as it settled around the still body of the former Boy Wonder. Red liquid slowly circled his only visible hand under the broken steel support beams.

The cops outside stopped their interrogations of the surviving drug cartel members, and instead turned their attention to the collapsed building, soon returning to their work, if not with less enthusiasm. The cuffed leader slowly let a smug grin come over his pig-like features as he started to cackle. His laughter ringing in the night as fear filled the orbiting Watchtower above.

(JLA Watchtower)

Batman slammed his fists angrily against the moniter systems in the Watchtower, startling the members currently occupying the satellite. He leaned over the screen and cursed loudly.

"I will _not_ let you die on me, Dick. I'm coming, just hold on," he whispered vehemently. He straightened and turned to the five League members watching him. His face hardened. "We have a problem."

**Yay! DaddyBats to the Rescue!**

**See you guys soon!**


	2. Blown Away

**Author's Note: because I forgot to do this before…I do not own any of this…There. The idea is mine, nothing else. Get off my case.**

**Shout out to my first reviewers EVER!**

**InvisibleNinja1234**

**Lakeshine**

**random obsession**

**Abbie-As-Sue.29**

**lover of all shipping**

**theL3monTart**

**There were three more but they were anonymous. Anyway, Thanks you guys! I was literally squealing on the floor and running around when I came home and checked back the first day! **

(3rd POV, Watchtower)

Batman's face hardened. "We have a problem. Nightwing is down, somewhere in Bludhaven. His precise location is currently unknown, as well as his state of wellbeing."

The few Leaguers who were present stopped whatever they were doing and stared intently at Batman, some angry while others concerned.

Wally walked over to Batman and asked, "What do you mean 'he's down'? Is he hurt? Where is he? Why don't you know anything? You're _Batman_! You probably have histories on every hero and villain on _and_ off planet! Don't you care at all?" He walked closer to Batman with every word until he was face to face with the dark vigilante.

True to his reputation, Batman didn't flinch as the speedster's volume increased with his emotions. Bruce, on the other hand, was deeply concerned about his first son. Of course he cared. He raised the kid for nearly _nine years! _Just because he let Dick have his own life and freedom away from the Cave did not mean he did not care.

The reflective lenses on his cowl narrowed as he pushed pass the enraged red head. He walked to the center of the room to address the other four circling around him. "I was, checking in on him and informing him of his newest assignment for the Team, when a blast came from his end. I lost radio contact with him shortly after, but not before receiving a message…"

He nodded to Wally who was still standing by the communications moniter where he had left him, glaring. He pushed a replay button and Dick's last farewell filled the empty space.

The silence which came after seemed heavier than that which filled him the first time. Black Canary had put a hand to her mouth in shock. Having mentored Dick as Robin first then as Nightwing with the Team gave her a motherly bond with him. She couldn't believe this could've happened to him. Sometimes, he really did seem invincible.

Wonder Woman didn't know what to think. She stood solemnly by Dinah, a hand on her shoulder. With her years in the League she had long ago realized how fragile normal humans could be. She was worried, but more importantly, they had to focus on finding Nightwing.

Oliver Queen, better known as Green Arrow, crinkled his eyebrows. Roy was not going to be happy about this. They were like brothers with the three of them, including Wally, of course. Now with Kaldur's betrayal so fresh in their minds, they needed each other. He turned to Bruce and they locked eyes. A small nod from the Bat was all he needed to call Roy on his com-link.

The red head just stared straight ahead. This couldn't happen, not to his little brother. They already lost one brother to the enemy, sure, in a completely different way than now, but all the same. His hands formed into fists, and he ran over to Bruce and waited for him to fully address them now that they knew as much as he did.

Batman activated the holographic screens in the room and attempted to connect to Nightwing's communicator. The others watched as a red error message popped onto the virtual map of Bludhaven. A grunt of annoyance was all the aggravation the Bat let out. "It was most likely destroyed in the blast we heard."

Green Arrow walked over to Black Canary and replaced Wonder Woman's hand with his own. "Roy's coming. Both he and Wally know Nightwing's patrol routes better than anyone here other than Bats, maybe even better than him. He'll be over shortly, it'll be fine. Dick knows how to take care of himself," he whispered to Dinah, more to reassure himself than anything. Still, doubts plagued all of their minds.

Finally, a red dot appeared in a shaded rectangle on the virtual map. "Either he intentionally activated his emergency beacon, or something hit him hard enough to do it for him," Bruce murmured underneath his cowl.

"Wally, you and Wonder Woman will go down first. You both are faster than the rest of us here and can help him if he needs it. Black Canary, Green Arrow, Red Arrow, and I will follow as quickly as we can. Don't hold back, Wally, your speed is a key element to this recovery mission. Do what you have to," Batman gave instructions to each of the heroes and suddenly wished that Superman was close by with his x-ray vision and superhearing instead of holed up in his Arctic fortress of solitude.

The heroes quickly scattered, the former Kid Flash and Wonder Woman to the Zeta Beams, and Green Arrow right beside to wait for his former partner. Black Canary walked up to Batman and tried to reassure him, "He's going to be okay, Bruce. He's a strong young man."

He pushed pass her and went back to the moniter screens suspended above them. Clicking on his left wrist cuff, a smaller version of the screens appeared above it. (Where did you think the Former Boy Wonder got it from?)

Dinah sighed, she knew he was worried, they all were. All of them here knew Dick from his very beginnings as Robin, hell, they had practically adopted the kid from the start. She looked away from the dark man when the Zeta Beams announced Red Arrow's arrival.

He pushed pass his mentor and walked straight up to Batman. He pointed an accusing finger at the man and demanded through his gritted teeth, "Where is he, Bruce? _Where is he_?" Batman looked up to the holographic screens above that showed Nightwing's current coordinates.

"We'll be leaving immediately." Batman walked briskly to the Zeta Beams and the others followed just as quickly. As soon as they beamed down into Bludhaven's newly made Zeta Port and walked outside the small, broken down shed that was its cover, Wally's voice came from Batman's com-link in his wrist. "I'm a mile away from Nightwing's location, but I can see the place from here. I saw a sign that mentioned something about…a paper-making factory where Nightwing's coordinates were? Why would he be there?"

Even though the wind from Wally's side was wreaking havoc on Batman's ears, he could clearly understand Kid Flash's words. "There must have been a crime. From what I could discern from his com-link, he was cuffing someone before the bomb blew," he quickly rationalized. They climbed up a nearby fire-escape onto the rooftops of the depressing city and soon began running to Nightwing's last known position.

"Wally, when you arrive, locate him as soon as possible, but you must stay out of public eye. If any criminal or police officer sees you, it could give this city more trouble than it already has."

"Why would we hide from the police? They're on our side right?"

"Unlike most cities, Gotham and Bludhaven's police are corrupt. Only a few officers are clean enough to trust, so I repeat, do _not _let anyone see you," Batman nearly groaned aloud at the Speedster's naïveté, but he was Batman, so he didn't. They all arrived at the smoldering remains of the paper-making factory, well, the rooftops around the building. Seeing the canary yellow hero and Wonder Woman on the next roof over, the four heroes jumped over and joined them.

They waited as the last of the lingering police cars drove away, and the only sound was the rustling of five of the six heroes who were impatient with the seemingly unnecessarily long wait.

Wally finally snapped at the apathetic Bat, "What are we waiting for? Dick is probably down there _dying _and we are just standing here watching birds fly away!"

They all turned to him while Batman just glared. The speedster stopped and reevaluated his words again before he reached a realization. "Okay, you _know _I did not mean for that to happen." They just stared.

"Let's go down," Batman broke the now awkward silence and led the way over to the mess. Wally sped down and Wonder Woman jumped. When they began stepping over the broken and bent debris, Batman used his most serious voice to order, "Fan out. Flash, take the back left corner. Black Canary, take the right. Red Arrow, you and Green Arrow take the other corners. Wonder Woman and I will search the left and right center for any signs of life. Report using your com-links as soon as you find anything." He knew it was likely that they were too late, but he was not going to believe anything until he had solid evidence before his eyes.

They nodded and walked to their designated spots and began to sift through the remains for any sign of the missing bird. A few minutes later, Green Arrow spoke up from his spot near the bottom of a pile of rusty metal. "I think I got something."

**Hehehe….I'm so evil ^3^ This is not the end folks! Give me at least ten more reviews and I'll put up the next chapter! I just need ten…cuz I'm OCD like that.**

**So, I'm now going to make Wally's alias, the Flash, until I know otherwise, but mostly I will just say Wally.**

**Thanks again you guys for your support on my first fic! It made my life! And all of you aspiring authors out there or those who are doing it because you can, keep it up!**

**LOVE YOU GUYS! **


	3. Blown Over

**Thanks to all of my reviewers, and the reason I updated before receiving ten reviews is because my sister made me do it before stealing the computer the rest of the day . . . TT^TT. **

**(Sorry, Sylviechic! )**

**So I've been working on a Merlin fic and will post it shortly . . . not sure if it's going to be a one-shot or not. . .meh. **

**This is all for you guys out there! I would never have kept this up this long without you all!**

**Okay, so the reason I called Wally, Kid Flash, is because he hasn't made an appearance in the show yet, his uncle is still alive, and I don't want to rename him and have an angry mob at my door.**

**I Do NOT Own Young Justice or Any of the Characters AT ALL! **

**There will be some swearing this chapter. BEWARE.**

**Enjoy.**

**(3****rd**** POV)**

"I think I got something. You guys should see this," When the rest of the group sped over to Green Arrow, the man looked almost as green as his feathered hat. They followed his line of sight to the bottom of the metal pile.

Underneath the bent metal and broken cement was a crushed human body. Its blood had oozed and congealed on the cracked ground, turning an ugly black-brown color in the process. Roy looked down first and caught smell of the human remains, "Oh _shit_, that's disgusting!"

Wally stared at the mess and quickly sped away to vomit on the ground. He came back at human speed wiping his mouth clean of the corrosive bile and a bit panicked as he began to ramble to the entire group.

"Ohmygod,he'sdeadhe'sdeadhe'sdead!It'sNightwingandhe'?Shouldwepullhimout,leavehimthereor," he turned to Batman and grabbed onto his suit near the collar with his fists. "Whatdowedowhatdowedowhatdowe-"

Roy hauled the spazzing speedster off the unfazed Bat and quickly informed him, "Wally, that's not him. It looks like it was one of the men he was fighting at the time."

Batman walked to the remains and analyzed what must have happened. "It appears that this man was cuffed at the time of his death. It could not have been Nightwing, the cloths are wrong, as are his proportions."

Wonder Woman and the Black Canary could tell that behind his cold exterior, the Bat was extremely relieved it was not his ward. The frown lines had slightly lightened and his voice was not as gruff. Dinah came up to the body, looked at it, grimaced, and turned back to the rest of the still smoking heap.

"We'll keep looking for him. Come on, let's go! He doesn't have all night," she urged everyone on with impatience evident in her tone. They scattered and continued their search, finding five more bodies in the next ten minutes.

Relieved as they were that none of them was the Former Boy Wonder (FBW for short, my friends), they couldn't shake the feeling that they would find him in the same state as the rest of the drug cartel. As the first thirty minutes rolled by, their pace began to slacken.

Batman watched as the group began to slow in its progress, already almost three fourths of the way done with the factory. Green Arrow was the first to stand. He popped his back and turned his head to stare at the hard-working Bat. "I don't think we're gonna find him Bats, not in one piece. If he was involved in a blast as big as this, he probably died when it first blew."

Batman turned and gave him a dangerous glare, worthy of the Batman and enough to make those of weak will wilt under its power, but Red Arrow was the one to initiate any violence. He grabbed his old mentor's collar and rammed him into part of the far wall which was somewhat intact as it was the farthest away from the blast.

"How the hell can you say that, you bastard, after all that Nightwing has done for us, let alone _you_? You know for a fact that if _any_ of us were in a life-threatening situation like this he would have kept looking for days, _days! _If you're ready to give up after just _thirty minutes_, well, I remember why I went solo in the first place, _coward_," Roy spit out the last word with disgust at his predecessor, who had his hands raised in defense.

Wonder Woman put a hand on Red Arrow's shoulder with enough silent authority to get his attention. He glanced sidelong at her before reluctantly releasing Green Arrow. She stood there a moment and let the green-clad man soothe his ruffled feathers then lashed one fist out and punched him across the jaw, only slightly reeling in her strength. His head whipped around and he slammed right back into the wall. He slid down and gently rubbed his jaw. "Ow."

"Enough." The haphazard team turned to Batman who had been watching the entire thing play out, slightly amused at it all. Wally had been watching with his arms crossed and only stopped smirking when the dark vigilante commanded everyone's attention.

Dinah was watching the spectacle with her hands on her hips. She sighed and shook her head in disappointment at the man she loves and turned fully to Batman.

He walked passed Ollie and looked at yet another rusty pile of metal right beside the man. He crouched down and brushed his hand over the ground disturbing some dust and debris. His hand passed over a wet substance and he immediately pulled the appendage back up to his face.

His black gloved hand was now a dark mahogany and reflective with the telltale color of fresh blood. All of the blood so far had been congealed and dry, but this was at least five minutes old.

Wally was quickly on the other side of the pile observing the Bat, when his tapping foot connected with something soft. He looked down and girlishly squeaked. He looked back down and leaned in to get a closer look. He gasped and looked back to Batman who was still examining the blood on the ground. "Batman!"

Said Bat took stood and came over to where the speedster was crouching. He looked down at a familiar black gloved hand poking out from the debris, surrounded by blood.

Batman glanced back at Wonder Woman and instructed, "Wonder Woman, try to lift the beams away from this area." She swiftly walked over once she saw the hand and used her strength to lift the heaviest beams off the top of the crumbling pile and tossed it somewhere behind her. Soon all of the heroes joined her in the job of freeing their comrade, brother, son, and friend.

After five minutes of grueling heavy-lifting, Diana removed a large slab of concrete that had fallen from what was once the roof of the warehouse, revealing the blooded upper body of Nightwing.

**Yay! Happy ending . . . Not! MUAHAHAHAHA! I'm soo evil. ^.^**

**Originally this was going to be around two-thousand words, but then I hacked it in two and forced it to become chapter four, so Yay! More for you!**

**I would like to dedicate this chapter to Pandora, the most wonderful invention on the face of the musical earth . . . it gave me inspiration! **

**Review Please! I enjoy your constructive criticism and moral support! Love the button.**

**REMEMBER I WILL NOT UPDATE UNTIL I GET TEN MORE REVIEWS AND I ALREADY HAVE CH. 4 TYPED UP. I'M JUST WAITING FOR YOU GUYS! Hehe.**


	4. Blown Apart

**Alright, chapter four already! Technically part two of three, but it got WAY too long, so I cut it in half. Cussing galore! BEWARE**

**So I just saw the new episode and I cried inside. Wally isn't a super anymore! Noooooooooo! Let's just say he got back into the suit for his little brother! Roy is called in after he has his shit together and he is not, well, the way he was. Oh My God they included his daughter in the show! AAAAAAaaaaahhhhhh!**

**Do you think Artemis was wearing pants . . . me neither. It scared me. She is living wiht him, her sister married Roy, they now have a niece. 0_0**

**WALLY DON'T LEAVE US! COME BACK TO ME!**

**I DO NOT OWN ANYTHING! OTHERWISE I WOULD BE RICH AND POSSIBLY RULE THE WORLD! MUAHAHAHAHAHA! Cough cough. Excuse me.**

**Anyway, ON WITH THE SHOW!**

**(still 3****rd**** POV)**

They all breathed a sigh of relief and doubled their efforts and fully freed him from the rubble. Wally let loose his inner child and jumped into the air with a fist raised high and whooped.

Diana and Roy lifted up the fallen hero's shoulders and legs to pull him out of the rubble into a relatively clear area and laid him down. Dinah pulled his head into her lap and checked his pulse. It was slightly erratic but otherwise stable.

She looked up at the worried team and let her gaze rest on the troubled Bat. She let a small smile grace her features and spoke to them all, "He's alive," Everyone visibly relaxed at this small victory. "But we have to get him back to the Watchtower to fully assess the damage done to him. Hopefully, none of it will be permanent." She reached out her hand and gently stroked his dirty black hair away from his bruised and cut face.

Batman walked over to his son and knelt next to him, holding his limp left hand. He was careful not to jostle Nightwing too badly for fear of angering his many wounds. "The jet's already on the way. He'll receive proper medical attention at the Watchtower in approximately ten minutes," Bruce softly informed the small gathering.

Wally laughed nervously in relief and fist-bumped Roy. They made it. Even the stubborn Red Arrow had to smile at the thought.

Green Arrow stood a few steps back from the group, feeling a little left out. "_I'm sorry I doubted ya', kid,_" he whispered to himself and once again felt the outline of his jaw.

Their small peace was rudely interrupted when Nightwing started to convulse and cough violently on the ground. Things went in slow motion when he stopped twitching and blood slowly bubbled and trickled down an already red line over his lip and off his chin.

"Nightwing!"

"He's not breathing, step back."

"Ohmygodhe'sdyinghe'sdying!"

"Oh shit! Kid don't you _dare_ give up now!"

"You better not leave us, you hear me, ya bastard, _you hear me_?"

"_Dick…_"

Everything went to hell in a few short seconds. Wally was completely lost in a panic, Roy was incoherently yelling at the still form of his little brother, only being held back by his grimacing mentor, Diana was standing silently, watching as Black Canary began administrating CPR, and Batman was stuck in his head, remembering in every detail the murder of his parents and second protégé, shuddering at the feeling of guilt and loneliness that came with the memories.

"One, two, three, four, . . ." Black Canary quietly counted off the number of compressions until reaching the maximum number, and then she lifted the Bat's chin up and breathed for him twice. Watching attentively as his chest rose and fell under her administrations.

She repeated the action for the next two and a half agonizing minutes until it seemed they had lost him to the shadow of death for good. She kept going until she felt short of breath.

Meanwhile, Batman was silently thinking of ways to get Ra's to let him use his Lazarus Pit, if only to have his eldest son back. Alfred would be disappointed in him and Tim would never look at him again, but it would be worth it, if only to have Dick back with them in the world of the living.

His head snapped up when he once again heard the ragged cough of his son who was leaning heavily on his left arm, the right obviously broken in a compound fracture.

Batman was immediately there, supporting his ward's back with one arm while the other took his heart rate again. He relaxed when he felt it strong and regular under his fingers.

Dick opened his eyes, but he kept them at half-mast, too weary to open them any further. He coughed again and looked around blearily, smiling slightly in confusion. He felt like he had been steam-rolled and beat into the ground by an angry elephant on steroids. He hurt and was extremely tired, but first, the detective in him had to know what happened.

He sat up straighter and leaned heavily on Batman, who Nightwing had noticed as soon as he woke up. He hissed as he jostled his broken arm and raised his left hand to his temple where an egg sized bloody lump rose up from the taut skin.

He looked at the concerned faces of his two best friends and brothers, his father, GA, Black Canary, and Wonder Woman and wondered who had managed to get them all together for more than a minute without them tearing each other apart.

He had enough of being scrutinized by the people he viewed as extended family like a bug under a magnifying glass and let his thoughts form words, slurred from exhaustion, pain, and a concussion he couldn't ignore, but words nonetheless.

"Hi, guys. What happened, exactly?" Their concerned looks turned to shock and then even deeper worry as soon as the first word came from his mouth.

Nightwing's eyes widened as apprehension grew in his chest. "What's wrong? Why are you looking at me like that?"

Dinah reached over Batman and put a gloved hand on Nightwing's forehead which was creased with confusion and nerves. "Are you feeling alright? You nearly died, Nightwing. You shouldn't try to move until we get you back to the Watchtower," she pulled her hand back and sighed.

Dick just watched them all watching him feeling deeply disturbed, but not entirely sure why. He chose to simply mutter to himself, "Was it something I said?" He turned his head to glance up as a familiar sound filled the sky above.

They all looked up as a black shape appeared almost silently above them. The larger Bat-jet used for group travel landed with a low thud. The metal ramp lowered and Green Arrow and Black Canary went up first. Wally sped over and replaced Batman's hold on Nightwing's shoulders to allow the Bat to get up to the jet and pilot. Wonder Woman looked back at the three boys, no, young men before climbing the rest of the way up the ramp.

Dick felt dizzy as Roy and Wally lifted him up carefully from the ground and into the air. He tried to get them to let him walk alone, but they just continued to the jet. Roy looked down, and Dick was shocked when he saw the raw emotion in the normally grumpy red head's face. The archer looked towards the jet before quietly saying, "You know, when Black Canary said you almost died. She lied. You _did _die, for like, two minutes! _Two whole damn minutes!_ We thought we lost you for good."

To say that Nightwing was stunned was an understatement. He was scared. He remembered exactly what had happened before the building blew, but nothing afterwards. "Damn. . ." He looked down for a moment before glancing at the other ginger holding his shoulders. "So, then, how did you –

Wally looked down at him and cleared his throat to interrupt the frantic teen before nervously inquiring, "Hey, um, Nightwing? You do realize your speaking in Romani again, right?"

**So, you like it? Plot twists are fun . . .**

**Thank you to all of my reviewers, LOVE YOU GUYS AND GIRLS!**

**I saw the episode and have found a new love in Blue Beetle! He's bilingual too, so that's a bonus for fun . . . hmmm. **

**I just noticed that most of my favorite characters are bilingual. Interesting.**

**REMEMBER THE REVIEW BUTTON**

**I WILL NOT UPDATE UNTIL I GET TEN MORE REVIEWS PEOPLE,**

**SOMETIMES I WON'T EVEN START WRITING _UNTIL_ I GET TEN REVIEWS**

**REVIEW.**


	5. Blown Together

**Thank you all for your opinions, questions, and support. I'm sorry I could not immediately post this, but I could not find the time to type it up.**

**First week of summer, who can blame me?**

**...don't answer that. -_-**

**So here it goes, need to get those creative juices flowing.**

**Sigh. Maybe this will answer some questions, or not. **

…**I went white-water rafting! It was amazing!**

**(WALLY!)**

I wouldn't have come back, not for anything. I was happy, and the stress crime-fighting caused in my life disappeared. I had Artemis, we shared a small flat and I didn't have to worry about her life, or mine.

I wouldn't have gone back, if it wasn't Dick who asked me, and it wasn't permanent. He asked me if we could go out on patrol together for old-time's sake.

At first I outright refused, but he kept asking and asking. Artemis for sure wasn't excited at all when I told her I was going out that night. In fact, she grabbed my arm and twisted it painfully behind my back, demanding me to stay with her that night. I knew she was concerned for me. Part of the reason we both quit was to get away from her father, Jade, and the worry when one of us was late for _anything_.

I tried to reason with her, maybe use my amazing charm to get her to see why I went out. I ended up begging for my arm back, explaining how I couldn't say "no" when Dick started pouting. (As old as we were, you would think I could resist my little bro when he pouts. I mean, what self-respecting eighteen year old pouts?)

I was startled when she pulled me around and initiated a desperate kiss. I enjoyed it for a moment before we leaned apart. I stared at her breathless and immediately wrapped my arms around her when I saw how upset she was.

Even with how quiet Bludhaven was ever since Nightwing made it his city, there was always a chance that one of us wouldn't come back from patrol. She knows this, I know this, every hero knows the danger, and I was out of practice.

I leaned into her shoulder and tried to reassure her the best way a speedster like me could. "Hey, babe, I'll be fine. What villain would dare to go up against the former Kid Flash and his faithful sidekick, Nightwing?"

I thickly laid on the confidence that I honestly didn't feel at the time. I _was_ out of practice, and Bludhaven was rarely crime-free. (Hah! Bludhaven? Crime-free? I crack myself up!)

I looked down at her when she laughed shakily and pulled away from me. "Sure, _Nightwing's _the sidekick."

I was a little put-out at the lack of warmth I had felt. It must have shown because she immediately slapped my arm playfully and smirked. "Go on then, _Flash Boy_, rough up some thugs for me, kay?"

I smirked back at her and leaned in for another quick kiss, which she returned in an instant. I ran normally to the door and waved back with a huge, childish grin on my face that she laughed at lovingly. "Bye, babe. See ya later tonight. Don't you miss me too much while I'm gone."

The door closed behind me, but not before I saw the small smile fall off her face and her waving hand lower to her side. I brushed it off at the time, and I sped to the nearest Zeta tube port I knew of.

**LINE BREAK!**

When I arrived at the tower and the computerized voice announced my arrival, I walked anxiously into the Watchtower's main room that had the huge view of Earth. A few Leaguers were standing around or over by the moniters that dominated most of the room at eye-level.

Batman came from nowhere and spoke from behind me, making me jump and turn to face him. "Nightwing is not through with patrol yet. Your suit has been remade to fit your size and is in the back room, two hallways down and the first door on the left. Change and wait for Nightwing back here."

The Bat walked forwards a few steps, and just as I was going to turn and rush to do just that, the man turned his cowled head back to face me over his shoulder. "Oh, and Wally?" I stood back in attention to him as something that could be distantly related to a smile flashed across his stony face. "It's good to have you back."

I smiled brightly at the unusual warm welcome, and I raised my hand in a mock salute before I sped to the room he mentioned. I _might_ have gotten lost a _few_ times, but I found it eventually and stepped inside. My suit was there, just as he said it would be.

I stepped closer to it, and the automatic door behind me slid shut. It was hanging in a case and was obviously altered to fit my size. I gaped at it for what felt like an hour to me, and I shook my head violently to focus. I opened it and quickly changed.

When I rushed back in I ran into Wonder Woman. We started a conversation and continued to walk back to the main room. I stopped whatever I was saying when I saw _the Batman_ slamming his fists against one of the moniters while grumbling to himself.

I was _so _not prepared for what he had to say. _Nightwing _was in trouble? _Somewhere_ in Bludhaven? Why didn't he already know where his own _son _was? He was the _Goddamn Batman_! He knows everything!

I was angry, and I meant to show him exactly how I felt. "What do you mean 'he's down'? Is he hurt? Where is he? Why don't you know anything? You're _Batman_! You probably have histories on every hero and villain on _and_ off planet!"

He brushed me off and continued to explain what the issue was. Why were we here? If Dick needed help, why weren't we just rushing out to help him? He's done so much for everyone, and we're waiting? I mean, _obviously_ Batman was worried, but he's my little brother!

Said Bat turned and nodded at me. It actually took me a second to realize what he wanted, but when I figured it out I quickly reached over to activate the recorded conversation between the two Bats.

When it was over, I couldn't think. The entire thing was so…_final_, as if he really didn't think he would make it out of it this time. He _had_ to make it out, not only was he the first sidekick –no –partner to ever fight crime along-side a superhero when he was _nine_, but he was trained by _the Batman_, so he absolutely _had _to make it. If he died on me, I'd bring him back to life just to kill him again! This just couldn't be happening, not to my little brother. We already lost one brother to the enemy, sure, in a completely different way than now, but all the same.

I listened vaguely to Batman as he issued out orders and complied by speeding over to the Zeta-tube. Wonder Woman passed by me and gently placed a reassuring hand on my shoulder. "He'll be okay, Wally. He knows how to handle himself."

I replied with only a grunt to tell her that I had heard her. She nodded in understanding and we continued to the Zeta-tubes. She went first and I hurried to follow.

Diana and I were beamed into a familiar shed in Bludhaven. I, of course, had been here before with Dick and Roy before I quit and Roy had become fully absorbed with finding his 'original' or whatever. Not like I don't care, or anything like that, but Dick and I, we had never even _met _Roy's 'original'.

I checked the coordinates on my virtual map that had been included in the updates to my costume. Wonder Woman and I rushed out, and I eventually passed a bill-board with the same address as Nightwing's last known location. It said something about Patrick's Perfect Paper Factory? Weird.

I called in to Bats and told him about the Bill-board. A crime? Well, I guess I could've thought of that, but still, a paper-making factory? Have to say, Dick, you sure know how to pick 'em.

And then I couldn't even let the _police_ see me? Last I heard, Dick was part of the police force in Bludhaven. Seriously, all cities inhabited by Bats are insanely weird.

Wonder Woman stopped me from rushing into the smoldering pile of building we found instead of a factory when we arrived. My heart sank when I saw the remains of the factory. No one could have survived an explosion with _that _much force, not even Nightwing, but I wouldn't give up the search until I found him, alive or in pieces. I'm sure that everyone here would agree with me.

When the others arrived, I wasn't expecting for _Roy_ to be here, but it wasn't surprising. Sure, he still wasn't back in his peak physical condition, but he was getting better. He shaved and cut his hair. It was still a _bit_ long, but he didn't look like a homeless person in spandex and Kevlar anymore.

We shared a look and he nodded. It was official. Our oldest brother was back for good.

I expected to run in and immediately start looking for the lost bird, but all we did was wait. And wait. And wait. And wait for what felt like hours to me, but really it was more like thirty minutes.

My patience was wearing on thin when the last police car drove off and I snapped at the Bat. , "What are we waiting for? Dick is probably down there _dying _and we are just standing here watching birds fly away!"

They stared at me with varying degrees of irritation, and I reevaluated my words.

…

Oh. Crap. "Okay, you _know _I did not mean it like that." I looked to Roy for help, but he just shook his head at me. _Thanks a lot_.

Batman glared at me for a good five seconds before giving the right-away. Finally. I sped down and took to looking through the mess in my area. It was bad, _really _bad. Concrete and pieces of metal littered every inch of floor space. I had to carefully step around the debris on the floor as to not get my feet impaled. It was agonizingly slow going.

Why, Dick? Why did you have to get into this mess the night I agreed to go with you? Artemis is going to be so worried. She's going to _kill _me when I get back. Just be okay. _Please_ be okay.

**Five Minutes (or so) Later! ****Line break!**

Oh, God. When I saw the remains that GA found, I nearly had a heart-attack. I thought it was him. I honestly thought that was him. That entire ordeal left me disheartened. In all honesty, if that's how a man larger than Nightwing ended up, what's the probability of him even remaining in _one piece?_ Not likely. Not at all.

I shook my head violently to clear it of those thoughts. Bad Wally, bad! You do _not _think that way! Dick is alive and he needs your help. Get it together, Wallman!

Ugh. I really need to stop talking to myself. I sound like that Blue Beetle kid Dick was telling me about a few nights ago.

And then when GA voiced my doubts out loud, yeah, he deserved that amazing punch by Diana. I crossed my arms and smirked at them, laughing to myself as GA gently held his jaw.

I was on one side of this _huge _pile of debris that Batman was searching through, when suddenly I looked down and saw a hand. A _hand. _I, uh, may have _manly _yelped in shock. I called Batman over when I noticed the hand was covered in black Kevlar.

I found him. We all started to uncover him piece by huge steel piece. We got his upper body out, and I couldn't hold myself back when I jumped and fist pumped the air.

We lifted the rest of the debris off him with renewed hope and pulled him away from it all. Dinah assured us that he was okay, well, he wasn't _completely fine, _but he was okay for now. I fist-bumped Roy at the news.

Everything was great until he started to spasm on the ground and cough up blood. Definitely _not _good. No, no, no, _no_. We _just _got him out of there. He was fine, and now he's dying, again.

I panicked and vibrated in one place, too frightened to be of much use. I was rambling to thin air, I knew that, but I needed a way to relieve my pent up stress. Dinah had started CPR while Roy began yelling and cussing at him. I didn't know what to do. I could only pray to whatever deities that were out there to bring him back. Of course I didn't believe in all of that, but I was grasping at straws.

He gasped for air and I nearly went through the ground in relief. He was okay again, now he needed to stay that way. This kid, I swear he's gonna give me gray hairs before I turn thirty.

He looked around at us hazily. I wondered what he was thinking about when he saw all six of us there. He tried to get up, but ended up leaning on Batman. Roy and I moved closer when he winced and hissed in pain.

As we continued to stare at the bird, I noticed he was getting more anxious. I knew he needed his space, but I was worried he was going to give out on us again. I was not going to leave him alone until he was up at the Watchtower getting serious medical attention.

He looked around at us and tried to give a smile, but it turned out more like a grimace. He opened his mouth to speak. Probably something sarcastic or witty, but I didn't understand a word of it.

"Hei, baieti. Ce sa întâmplat?"

…what? Was that _Romani?_ Normally when we were younger I would hear him mumble it in his sleep or when he was panicked, but I haven't heard it come from him in _years_. Not since we joined the Team. Did he even realize he was speaking it?

No one said anything for a while and Dick's face became slightly strained and worried. "Ce este greşit? De ce te uiţi la mine aşa?"

This is bad, _really_ bad. If he can't speak English, can he even understand us? He has to be able to communicate some way to the Team; he's sort of the leader at the moment.

Batman had reached over and talked to him while I was mentally freaking out. It _seemed_ like he understood, at least, but it could have been some sort of telepathic Bat communication. Hey, with the Bats, who knew?

He looked over at us as we waited for the jet to arrive and muttered something I couldn't quite catch.

We looked up about two seconds after the Bats did to see the jet hovering above the wreckage. Roy and I went to carry him up the ramp together so we could possibly get some answers from him. Seriously, this kid gave us all regular heart-attacks.

I'm still not completely sure if he could understand us, but Roy was willing to give it a try, so why not?

Hearing that he died for a little there _definitely _got his attention. (Now I'm sure he could understand us, brain-damage regardless, and I'm sure that even _he_ couldn't come away unscathed from so many head wounds.)

He furrowed his eye-brows and said softly, "Fir-ar." Something I'm pretty sure was damn. (Remember, the first thing _anyone _learns in a foreign language is how to curse.)

He looked up at me from where I gripped his cut-up shoulders and began speaking again. "Deci, atunci cum ai facut –

I glanced back down at him and swallowed nervously. Okay, Wally, how to break the news… "Hey, um, Nightwing? You do realize your speaking in Romani again, right?" Smooth.

The whites of his mask widened dramatically and he choked out heavily, "Ce?"

I winced and shared a guilty look with Roy. I'm not really sure why_ I_ felt guilty. It's not like I had any direct part in the explosion, but I really hated to be the one to tell him.

Roy looked down and confirmed quietly, as if speaking too loudly would break him in his fragile state. "Yeah, it's true."

We reached the ramp and I had to readjust my hold on him to get him up to the medical beds in the jet without jostling his many injuries too badly. I winced every time he grit his teeth to keep himself from groaning in pain.

We all flinched when the jet started up and jolted him on his temporary bed. He just hissed and clenched his teeth even harder. I wondered idly if they would break if he held his jaw any tighter.

He was eerily still and pale. I knew he was okay for now, but until he was back up and flying around, I was going to worry. I straightened and looked around the hanger to every other hero in their seats. We all felt the same, and he was just going to have to deal with it.

**LINE BREAKS ARE ANNOYING!**

**Kay! I finally got this done, aren't you happy? **

**I apologize for the wait, but I had to wait for Saturday's episode! **

**Bart! I feel mixed emotions about you, kid! **

**He's so cute, but Wally and Barry's timeline could be completely effed up!**

**At least he still has his powers!**

**His name is still Kid Flash! HAHA! YES!**

**I don't have to change anything! So there! **

**Now leave me alone to freak out about the episode. . **

**Still in shock about everything! **

**Barry was supposed to die this episode, so I love Bart! **

**But now the relationship between the existing speedsters will be more strained, so I hate you!**

**You're such a conundrum! **


End file.
